O Brother Where Art Thou?

At the very beginning of the film, the scene fades into black and white, and slowly changes to sepia toned, then color. Not long after they escape, the three protagonists come across a blind, black man who tells them their fortunes. This character is a reference to the blind oracle Tiresius in the the Odyssey. The very last scene of the movie is that of this blind man, still going along his path, and the color fades to sepia, then black and white. This opposite color fading effect creates a bookend effect, effectively introducing and concluding the universe of the film. The movie only exists in the hour and a half that it is playing. The color effects serve the purpose of providing closure for the viewer, as well as invoking a feeling of nostalgia. The blind oracle reappears to remind us of the epic journey that the characters have been on, as is highlighted by the final shot of the railroad perspective disappearing into the horizon. These themes also emphasize a major part of the movie- that none of the characters really change. The blind man is still continuing on his epic adventure, just as Everett is beginning his new adventure as a free man and as a family man.